Better Dead than Fred

I don’t need to tell you things have been so quiet in Metville that the organization must be up to no good again. Sure enough some reports indicate a sinister take on the recent front-office announcements that have me worried beyond the fact they’ve done so little this year to address the on-field product.

Words I’ve heard from Mets people today regarding Fred Wilpon’s decision to bring back Omar Minaya despite reservations within the current front office:

So there you go. I don’t doubt Omar’s baseball smarts, even if he was an awful General Manager for the club: He got pushed around by underlings, destroyed in trades, too often proved too generous in contract negotiations, hired two bad managers, and frequently embarrassed the organization at the podium. A job behind the scenes, and not in front of them, is the right role for him.

So what’s the worry? Well, it would appear as though his hiring came as something of a favor to Fred Wilpon, who at age 81 ought to be over this kind of meddling, but this kind of stuff is seemingly always happening. You can draw a dotted line directly to Fred to just about every stupid move and setback this team has faced since Jeff Torborg. He’s unaccountable; he’s incompetent but doesn’t think so; and the organization under Fred frequently develops these indirect channels of command that lead to conflicting circles of influence. Stapling Omar Minaya to the back of a new contract for Sandy against the wishes of the rest of the front office just stinks. Just as Fred undermined Jim Duquette’s influence 13 years ago.

I’m not one of these angry suffering dipshits who believe a team should do everything they wish but the idea that the club is united in trying to win ought to be the right of every fan. What we get with the Mets, all too often, is the image of a club that’s trying to benefit conflicting points of view encouraged by one unaccountable and very stupid owner. It’s really hard to root for this.

As for the personnel, there’s been more departures than arrivals lately. Let’s all say goodbye to Erik Goeddel, who wore No. 62 for parts of four seasons and at times looked capable but was frequently injured. My lasting memory of Geody was a terrible appearance protecting a 9-run, 9th-inning lead in Game 3 of the NLDS and forcing Terry to go to Jeurys Familia, who’d prove in the coming weeks he’d need rest. Goeddel signed a minor league deal with Texas.

Also officially a former Met is Travis Taijeron, who signed a minor league deal with the Dodgers. This is no tragedy given Taijeron’s awful play in the outfield and power that didn’t appear to come with him from Triple A. And Tommy Milone, who in my mind ought to go down as the owner of the poorest toughness-to-tattoos ratio in Mets history, signed with Washington. It’s always a tragedy to see guys unable to cash in a golden opportunity to rejuvenate their careers. I know it’s not easy. Their departures open up Nos. 28 and 29.

On their way is Anthony Swarzak, the only addition made at the Winter Meetings that helped fuel the restlessness among fans and the void of activity that often leads to the crap I was discussing above. I still haven’t heard if Swarzy has been issued a number yet. He’s worn five of them so far in his career but two of them — 37 and 41 — are unavailable at the present time.

Also new to the org will be Jose Lobaton, an 8-year veteran catcher who presumably will push d’Arnaud and Plawecki and catch spring training games. Lobaton has worn the bullpen-catchery number 59 with both the Nats and Rays in his career. That’s available here now that Fernando Salas has gone away.

Chubby lefty reliever Josh Edgin has also departed, to Baltimore on a minor league deal. Edgin dates back to the first Omar era, and hung around the organization for six years as the team’s first and only No. 66.

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[…] of course, to the decisions of the manager he named, to the play of the guys he acquired, to the typical Mets clusterfuck of a succession plan, and even when things go well, or especially when they do, the worst is sure […]